


Mary's Menagerie of Oracles

by samwhambam



Category: RuPaul's Drag Race RPF
Genre: F/F, Tarot, but religion isn't a big part of it, mild panic attack happens, slowish burn, some religious comments are made
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-08-20
Updated: 2018-08-29
Packaged: 2019-06-29 22:21:48
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 7,371
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/15738486
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/samwhambam/pseuds/samwhambam
Summary: On her way home from getting coffee with her ex, Trixie finds herself walking into Mary's Menagerie of Oracles. There she meets Katya, who offers her a free tarot reading which she accepts.





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> Hi! This is my first fic in over a year and my first Trixya fic! I hope you enjoy it. Leave kudos and comments and you can also come talk to me on tumblr! (username is samwhambam)
> 
> There is going to be a second part to this! It is in the process of being written ... i just have to figure out what exactly I want to happen because this first part isn't what i originally planned. it just did its thing and morphed into this.
> 
> I dabble in tarot, so I hope I didn't bring dishonor to the craft with this fic. You get a gold star if ya can guess what deck it is!

Trixie stood in front of the shop, counting her breaths as she stared at the door. She was fuming, a cup of coffee with her ex had led to another fight, not the overwhelming sense of closure that she had been looking for. Six months had passed and she wasn’t any closer to moving on with her life. It was a fight that had drawn the attention of those around them and her cheeks had burned with embarrassment. She had cried into her coffee, the pain and anger of the breakup resurfacing in a way she thought she had worked past, leaving her drained and angry at herself for not being okay yet. It was a fight that had led her to wander, trying to blow off her anger by taking the long way home. Anger that had seeped into her bones before turning into defeat and a cloud of self-doubt and resentment settled over her mind.

She had only ever passed by the shop once. Once when she had just moved and Sacramento didn’t make sense to her yet and she couldn’t help but make a wrong turn on the way home after her phone died. _Mary’s Menagerie of Oracles_ had stood in front of her, a dark grey storefront that was a stark contrast between the lighter, more appropriate stores next to it. She had paused then in front of the shop too fascinated by the objects in the windows, enticed by the smell of the incense she could smell burning. But she had scurried away once she heard her Christian mother’s voice flooding her mind with talk of satanic magic.

Today, with no energy left to convince her otherwise, her curiosity pushed her over the edge, nudging her closer to the door. Nothing made sense to Trixie anymore. The relationship she deemed to be the one had gone down in flames, what could potentially be was beyond repair. She had stopped getting booked at open mic nights, being asked to come back once she had more original music and the homesickness that had settled into her heart was coursing through her veins. But she couldn’t go home. Sacramento had been her introduction into California, a stepping stone to L.A. or San Francisco, a way to build her life without having to immediately sell an organ to afford housing. Two years had gone by and she wasn’t any closer to being someone.

Trixie pulled the door open, a wall of incense hitting her as she stepped into the shop. She held a hand behind her, catching the door before it slammed shut. The shop was still, a soft melody barely cut through the thick silence. Trixie briefly considered slipping out of the door before her presence interrupted the calm of the shop, instead she pushed herself further in. The walls where lined with tall bookshelves whose contents were spilling over. Tables and display cases created walkways that snaked towards the back of the store. Trixie followed it, pushing her cross-body bag behind her as the walkway narrowed. Her eyes hopped between displays, not taking much in, just waiting for something to catch her eye.

Trixie paused at the display of tarot cards, glancing around her to make sure no one was around. She reached for a deck, pausing when she thought she heard something behind her. She held her breath and closed her eyes. Her mother’s voice began to fill her mind, calling tarot cards the work of the devil, only something that psychics and gypsies did to try to convert Christians to their ways. Trixie shook her head. She had left that behind, left that life without looking back. This wasn’t the time to get caught up in the past. Not when she was trying so hard to propel herself into some sort of future.

“Trixie, no. Fuck them,” She whispered to herself before rolling back her shoulders. “Try something new.”

She ran her hands over the display desk, her fingers bumping along the uneven stacks of tarot decks. Her fingers stilled over a box illustrated with the image of a mermaid, their hair floating behind them, surrounding their head like a halo, backlit by sun rays streaking through the water. She picked it up, turning the box over to see a breathtaking image of a mermaid draped over a coral throne, lilies braided into her flowing orange hair with seaweed knotted into the words ‘ _The High Priestess_ ’ along the bottom. A price tag covered the mermaid’s face, but Trixie could make an educated guess that her face was just as ethereal as the rest of the card.

A thump behind her made Trixie jump, dropping the box back onto the table. A raspy voice apologized as Trixie bumped the deck in line with the other boxes. She readied herself to turn around, excuse herself past the other customer and stalk her way through the front door and back onto the empty street, away from the shop she had randomly decided to enter. But the woman stopped Trixie in her tracks, narrowly avoiding bumping into her as she turned. Both in each other’s way for half a second before Trixie took a step back, bumping into the table behind her instead. The woman scurried past Trixie, arms full of different books, some of the smaller ones starting to slip as she picked up her pace. One fell, then another as she disappeared out of sight. Trixie picked up the fallen books, following her towards the front of the store.

“Here,” Trixie mumbled as she placed the books on the counter, pausing to admire the case of rings propped up near the register. She heard the woman dump her armful of books onto the counter, shuffling them into piles.

“Thank you!” The woman’s voice ran loud and clear, drawing Trixie’s eyes to her for the first time. Trixie’s eyes flew around her face, bouncing from feature to feature, taking in the sloppy black shadow surrounding icey blue eyes to the slightly over lined lips drawn into a permanent pout. The sharp point of her nose contrasted her rounded eyebrows that were much darker than her bleached hair. Each feature strong and demanding attention, but coming together to make Trixie swoon for a second before her attention was drawn to the moment. Wringing her hands together, she tried to massage the anxiety out of them. She imagined her fingers milking the restlessness from each finger of the other hand, but her pores were clogged and the anxiety soaked deeper into the muscles of her fingers. It traveled up her arms and she considered bolting before it gripped her heart.

“Can I help you find anything? Cards? Crystals? Ouija boards that have successfully summoned spirits?“ The woman said from behind the counter, her lips twitching into an amused smirk as Trixie’s mouth fell open. She leaned her forearms against the glass, her eyes sparkling. Her elbow had bumped one of the piles and it slid off the counter, landing somewhere near her feet. She ignored the commotion, her eyes trained solely on Trixie.

“Oh! I was just looking, but what kind of spirits are we talking? I’m fully only friends with demons disguised as Victorian era children or dead 48-year-old virgins,” Trixie felt a part of the fog lifting from her mind as the woman let out a bark of laughter, slamming a hand against the glass countertop. The seemingly shared sense of humor stopped her anxiety in its tracks, causing it to pause before seeping back down to her fingertips.

“Oh, I wish. Just your run of the mill grandfather who died surrounded by their family,” She flashed her pearly whites and Trixie felt the inexplicable need to run her fingers over the woman’s perfect teeth. Push on them just to feel rooted in their strength. It was a silly thought after a silly comment. Trixie giggled as she held out her hand.

“Trixie.”

“Katya,” They shook hands over the counter, with Trixie taking a couple of steps closer. Katya’s long fingers had gripped Trixie’s own hand so confidently, it pulled her back to the moment. The feeling of skin on skin had pushed the anxiety out of Trixie, leaving her hands deliciously empty. “Trixie, what can I do for you?”

Trixie’s mind swam with all the possible answers. A decent lay could be a place to start. A shoulder to cry on would also be beneficial. The possibilities were endless. She placed her hands on the glass counter between them, drumming her fingertips against it. She honestly didn’t know what she thought would come from browsing the shop, besides feeding the curiosity that had built in that split second before entering. Her mind drifted to the display of tarot cards.

“What do you know about tarot cards?” Trixie asked instead. She could feel the weird energy left from her coffee meeting slowly melting off her back. Her breath was a little easier to keep, her bra seemed to loosen against her and the vertical space between her shoulders and jaw grew. Exhaustion was bound to settle into her soon, but that could wait.

“I dabble in it. Are you looking for readings or looking to buy your own deck?” Katya was beaming, her eyes wide and her smile wider. Trixie had hit a sweet spot without realizing it. Katya’s spike in energy was infectious and Trixie caught herself smiling. The shop assistant was cute and Trixie couldn’t fight the attraction pulling her towards Katya.

“A reading?” Trixie couldn’t help the lilt at the end. She subconsciously popped her hip to the right, exaggerating the hourglass shape of her body. Katya’s eyes jumped to Trixie’s hip before quickly skimming up her body. Trixie blushed at the unspoken compliment, thankful for her body’s quick decision to flirt. She often got away from herself, acting without thinking or planning. Sometimes it resulted in disaster and sometimes, very few times, it worked in her favor.

A voice in Trixie’s mind was yelling at her, telling her to go home. That flirting with a beautiful woman wouldn’t fix any of her problems, wouldn’t mend her heart that broke for a second time that morning. Trixie knew that. She was aware. But the rush she was feeling was keeping her there. The possibility of feeling wanted again kept her rooted in her spot.

“Are you—“ Katya was cut off the door slamming closed and a ‘ _Katya!_ ’ ringing through the shop. Katya’s brows furrowed before relaxing in recognition as they called her name again. She leaned towards Trixie, whispering a conspiring ‘ _one moment, Trixie_ ’ before sauntering over to the front of the store. Trixie watched her weave her way confidently through the maze of artifacts.

Once Katya was out of eyesight, Trixie bent over, letting her forehead touch the cold glass in front of her. The flirting had been too much, she decided. Something she actually wasn’t quite ready for yet. She counted to five, rooting herself back into the moment. Straightening up, she leaned a hip against the counter trying to feel the cool glass through her clothing. Closing her eyes she let all of her expectations of the moment leave her. _You don’t have to flirt with her. You don’t have to try to date every attractive woman you meet. You can be friends with anyone you want to be. Let your heart be broken, it’s okay. You don’t have to meet her energy. You can leave any time you want to._

Quick footsteps shook Trixie out of her trance. She opened her eyes to automatically meet Katya’s bright blue ones. There was a mischievous glint in them and Trixie was convinced that Katya couldn’t hide any of her emotions. That any emotion would make itself known in her eyes and infect those around her. The twisted thought of how beautiful they would look filled with tears infiltrated Trixie’s mind and it stole the breath from her lungs. Any doubt of flirting left her mind and all she wanted was to be close to Katya.

“A reading right?” Katya smirked and then she was back behind the counter, reaching down, most of her body disappearing.

“Mhm,” Trixie hummed before jumping slightly as Katya slammed a purse onto the counter. Katya threw the top flap open, reaching in blindly, her eyes still fixed on Trixie’s.

“Look. I’m not very good. Not good at all, still learning my deck and practicing on as many people as I can. I’m inexperienced compared to others, but I’ll do a reading for you for free. Which is something,” Katya moved quickly, pulling out a silk package from her purse, dropping the purse back by her feet. This time she wasn’t looking at Trixie and Trixie could see what resembled the fear of rejection etching itself onto Katya’s face. She could see where her teeth were biting at the inside of her bottom lip, worry took place of the excitement in Katya’s eyes.

“Sure!” Trixie’s sure she would’ve consented to anything Katya asked of her within the shop. She wasn’t sure what she was getting herself into, but watching Katya light up and relax made it already seem worth it.

Trixie watched Katya’s fingers untie a knot in the satin. The piece of fabric fell to the counter and then Katya began to shuffle. The cards travelling quickly between her hands and then she was handing the stack to Trixie. An eyebrow raise prompted Katya to push it closer to Trixie.

“You have to shuffle the deck! Whatever method you want, just keep them facing the same way. More for my sake,” Katya smiled encouragingly, the small smile turning into a beam as Trixie finally took the deck. “Do you have a question you want the cards to give you guidance on?”

“Huh,” Trixie ran her right index finger along the edge of the stack, distracted by the card on top. The distorted image of a clown made her pause, wondering what she had gotten herself into. Everything that had happened that morning had thrown her for a loop. Any other day and she’d be thriving under the scrutiny of an attractive woman. Trixie could do life, she was good at it. She was confident, took everything at face value and made every situation work for her. She adapted. But standing there with Katya, she could only handle half of the situation. She kept flipping between perfectly alright and completely out of her element.

“If you don’t have a question, that’s fine. We can do a really general reading. I’ve had the most success when it comes to love readings. So we can see what they say about your love life?” Katya picked up a couple cards that had slipped out of Trixie’s hands. She waited for a reaction from Trixie who had only looked up to stare at her.

_Why the hell not._

“Okay. Let’s look at the shit show that’s my love life,” Trixie consented, taking the cards back from Katya and starting the process of shuffling.

“Just think about your love life as you shuffle. Once you feel like you’re done shuffling, cut the deck and we can start,” Katya’s voice was gentle, soft and Trixie tuned her out as she shuffled.

A slurry of emotions flew through her. Longing, anger and hope all clouded her eyes. Once she felt calm, she cut the deck and placed the stack on the counter. Katya scooped them up and dealt three cards out, placing them from left to right in the order they came off the top.

“We’re going to do a three card reading. The one on the left represents the past, the middle the present and the right the future,” Her hand passed over each card laid out. Trixie held her breath as Katya’s focus shifted between the three cards. The silence settled between them and Trixie’s eyes landed on the first card.

She exhaled, eyebrows furrowing at the figure on the card. The figure with its upturned eyebrows and teeth worrying into its hand and the entity clinging to its back frightened her. The winged creature had an aura of maliciousness and the main figure looked unable to shake the feeling of discontent.

“Nine of swords,” Katya looked up at Trixie, eyes boring into Trixie’s. Looking for any sign she should stop. “It’s upright and refers to your past. You’ve had your heart broken. A past relationship left you feeling rejected and unloved. You’ve been hurt and it really fucked you up. It left you lonely and you doubted yourself. It was hard and you’re still affected by it.”

Trixie looked away from Katya, back down to the card. She felt her lips purse and Katya tapped on the glass. She ignored the slight thumping and willed herself to not think back on the relationship. It wasn’t a fresh wound. She couldn’t let it affect her anymore.

“And this one?” Trixie asked as she pushed the middle card towards Katya. This one filled Trixie with less dread. The creature was still ugly, but she sat upon a small throne and that, Trixie could get behind. She held a flower and was less intimidating than the other card.

“The Empress! Reversed!” Katya tapped again on the glass, biting her lip in concentration. She mumbled to herself, saying something about ‘emperor’ before her eyes lit up and she slapped the counter. “I remember! When she’s reversed, it’s basically a reminder to take care of yourself. You’ve been neglecting yourself, most likely because of your heartache. You’ve spent so long caring for other people and then the break up happened and you’ve lost the love and patience you’ve had for yourself. Start thinking about your own needs! You’re important too, Trixie. This is your present. Take this head on today and don’t let you be your biggest saboteur. You deserve to be happy. Let yourself be happy.”

And then Katya’s hand was pressing on Trixie’s, holding it against the countertop. Katya’s palm was warm and clammy and Trixie could feel the walls closing in on her.

“Am I getting anything right so far?” Katya asked. There was a tight-lipped smile on her face but her eyes gave away the excitement she was feeling at having read the cards right.

“Uh huh, keep going,” Trixie balled up her hand underneath Katya’s hand.

Katya raised her eyebrows, noticing that she was beginning to tread out onto thin ice. She looked back to the third card, furrowed her eyebrows and then her hand was off of Trixie’s. Pulling a book out of her purse, she flipped the pages until she slammed the book onto the counter. Trixie jumped at the sound and then Katya was backtracking, turning the pages back until she reached a page that said ‘ _Ace of Cups_ ’ along the top.

Trixie studied the card as Katya skimmed the page. This time the main figure had wings and a slight smile. She held an ornate goblet, her body was adorned with gold jewelry and for the first time since the reading started, Trixie felt calm.

“This is your future card. When it comes to time in tarot, it’s relative. There isn’t a time attached to ‘future.’ Future can mean today, in three months, or in years. Let it come to you, don’t rush it,” Katya explained, closing the book as she opened her mouth again. “This card represents the first stages of a relationship. The moon breathing life into the cup suggests nurture. Give the relationship what it needs, and it’ll blossom. It’s a divine love. It’s a lasting love. You’ll find that person and they’ll be it for you.”

And then the shop was silent. Katya stared at Trixie and Trixie stared at the cards. The silence stretched and then the walls began to move again. It was too much. It was all too much. Trixie began to sweat and with the walls moving, she could feel the amount of breathable air begin to diminish. She imagined breathing in the clean air and releasing CO2. The balance began to tilt and her used air began to outweigh the oxygen.

She could hear Katya calling her name, but it was faint. Trixie gripped her bag, pulling it closer to her. She mumbled out a quick ‘ _thanks_ ’ and then turned around and fled. The tables passed by her in a blur as she worked her way back through the maze of shit. Everything was shapeless, a blur until she stepped outside and the bright afternoon light caused her to squint. She closed her eyes as she was finally able to breathe.

The door opened behind her and then Katya was standing next to her, pressing a piece of paper into Trixie’s hand. Trixie kept her eyes closed, her chest rising and falling rapidly as she struggled to keep her breathing steady.

“Call me if you need anything,” Katya’s voice was soft, miles away. Trixie finally opened her eyes and Katya was looking up at her. There was something soft in her eyes and Trixie nodded and then turned and walked away.


	2. Chapter 2

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Trixie brought her straw back to her lips, taking a longer pull from her coffee than was necessary. She stared into the dark liquid, counting the small bubbles that had formed on the top from her incessant stirring. The raging in fire of her had settled down and for the first time in a while, she felt calm. All the anxiety that she couldn’t seem to shake was finally draining from her body. She lost herself in her thoughts, analyzing all the ways in which she felt okay. She only looked up when she felt a nudge on her foot, not realizing Katya was waiting for some sort of affirmation from her.

_One, two, three, four, five._

_One, two, three, four, five._

Trixie counted the cracks in her ceiling over and over again. It had been a month since the tarot incident. A month since a complete stranger had read her life so perfectly that Trixie had actually gotten scared and fled.

It almost felt pathetic, letting cards affect her like this. The whole thing had taken less than five minutes, but it shook her. The _Nine of Sword_ had scared her when it was first drawn, but walking away from the shop, she had justified it as a good guess. A fair guess. Trixie had never met anyone that didn’t have their heart broken, in one way or another. Katya could’ve pulled that out of her ass and it would’ve had a 90% success rate.

_The Empress_ had hit the nail on the head. A little less explainable, but who didn’t need to be nicer to themselves? Trixie could shrug that one off as well. But the combination of the two was another thing. That was a little less explainable. Trixie couldn’t suspend belief for both cards being pulled together. Which made the third card the worst of the three.

_Ace of Cups_. The promise of love. The idea of love terrified Trixie. She had spent her whole life with the idea in her head that romance wasn’t for her. Then Natalie happened and she had spread love and warmth through Trixie’s chest, and then she crushed her like a cigarette butt under her shoe. There was no way Trixie would be ready for another round of debilitating heartbreak any time soon.

It was three in the afternoon and the sun was blinding. The blinds and windows were open and had been since the previous day. The heat diffused into her room and yet Trixie couldn’t be bothered to get up and close them. She turned over, her back to the world. She blinked against the glare of the white wall. Her eyes adjusted and then traced between the three thumbtacks still stuck in her wall.

_One, two, three._

The thumbtacks had been holding up wish lists that Trixie had scribbled in a fit of anxiety late one night. One was of things she would buy herself if she had all the money in the world. That list was short and Trixie hadn’t made a move towards buying any of them. The second was a to-do list that was made in a wild attempt to get her life back on track after the break up. The third was her hopes and dreams written out, the reasons why she had come to California in the first place. She had torn down all the lists once she got home from the impromptu tarot reading.

_One, two, three._

Above the three vacant was a thumbtack holding the piece of paper Katya had placed in her hand that night. All the numbers were spaced evenly, in the proper format, parenthesis and dashes all in their place. _Katya_ was written in sweeping cursive and Trixie cursed at the break between the _K_ and _a_.

Trixie rolled her eyes at the ‘ _please call me’_ that was written underneath ‘ _Katya’_. Trixie wasn’t going to call her, not after she had read her so clearly and accurately and viciously but Katya wasn’t aware of that last one. What could Trixie even say? ‘ _Hey, that was freaky and I’m sorry that I ran away but I don’t know what you want from me?’_ Definitely not.

‘ _I’m calling. What do you want?’_ Not that one either.

‘ _Is this shit even real? Where’s the scientific facts?’_ That one could potentially work, but Trixie nixed that idea as well, not wanting to completely offend the stranger.

Trixie rolled back towards the window. She had dragged herself out of bed at noon, then crawled back in with her laptop shortly after. The Macbook was tucked in by her feet and Trixie tapped her toes against it as she tried to will herself out of bed for the second time that day. She cursed the Mac store she worked at for not asking her to come in for the weekend. She could’ve used the distraction instead of fixating on—

_Ace of Cups._

It was dumb. Just a card. They were just ancient playing cards. Nothing to get her panties in a bunch over. Only a small portion of the world’s population actually believed in them. Trixie didn’t. It had no power over her, it wasn’t her future. Just a random card that had been pulled by a random woman.

_Ace of Cups._

That fucking demon woman holding that stupid cup as if it was the sun and the moon combined. Divine love? What the fuck did that mean? Trixie was done with love. She was over it. She didn’t want it. She was fine before she fell in love. Her life was a work in progress, but it was one she was proud of. She wasn’t the shriveled shell she was now.

_Ace of Cups._

Trixie threw the covers off her body, propelling herself out of bed. She put in her contacts and brushed her teeth in record time. The front door of her apartment slammed behind her and then she was running through Midtown, tracing the steps she took a month prior. She only stopped when she was in front of the shop, barely hesitating before she threw open the door.

“Katya!” She called out as she raced her way through the maze of shit. “Katya!”

Trixie looked around as she stepped around the tarot table and finally noticed the woman behind the counter. The woman that was not Katya.

“Uh. Katya isn’t here right now,” The woman took a step away from the counter, sulking farther into the area behind the register. Her red hair was a frizzy halo around her head with sunglasses sitting in the nest on top. Trixie rolled her eyes at the shapeless black frock the woman was wearing. This is more of what she was expecting the first time she entered the shop. The woman took Trixie in with a weary eye.

“Oh!” Trixie stopped where she was, finally breaking out of the trance that had settled over her as she got out of bed. She had thrown her hair up as she ran down J Street and was still wearing the sundress she wore yesterday. The state that she was in hit her and embarrassment flushed over her neck, trickling onto her face. “Okay.”

She took a step back, her senses coming back to her. She had barged in, without thinking about it. Suddenly, Katya not being there almost seemed like the best-case scenario.

“She’ll be back in on Monday!” The woman called out to her as Trixie turned around.

“Okay,” She mumbled as she walked back out the store. “Okay.”

And then Trixie was back in her room, staring at the number tacked on her wall. She crossed her arms, scratching at her left bicep with her fingernails. Tracing ‘ _ace’_ into her skin, once, twice, three times.

“I’m fine,” She muttered, biting at her bottom lip. She pushed her lip through her teeth, repeating the action multiple times while pressing down harder with her teeth each time.

Before she could register what she was doing, she was floating along the ceiling, watching her body grab her phone off her bed and dialing the numbers that were plastered on her wall. She felt herself materializing back in her body as a gentle ‘ _hello?’_ sparked her back into reality.

“Katya! Hey! Quick question!” Trixie paused as she waited for Katya’s response.

“Oh! I’m sorry, but I don’t have this number saved? Who is this?” Katya spoke quickly as if she was trying to get the awkward part of the conversation out of the way. Which, made Trixie chuckle because she was about to go in swinging.

“Trixie! The one you did the reading for. I ran out of the shop in a fit. You gave me your number,” Trixie only took a second to breathe before diving back in. “Is all that shit true? Is it real?”

“Oh! Trixie, yes! Uh,” Katya hummed on her end of the line. “Can we meet up in person? It’ll be easier to answer your questions?” 

“Sure! Temple? In 30 minutes?” Trixie replied, already pulling out a fresh dress from her closet. She kicked off her sandals waiting for Katya’s response. 

“That is so freaky. I’m currently eating a burrito next door to Temple. So that works for me,” Katya said with what Trixie could only assume was with a mouth full of food.

“Okay. I’ll see you then.”

Trixie changed in a dissociative state, changing from one pink dress to the next. Switching from sandals to converse and her messy bun to a more organized half pony. Mascara and lip gloss was next and then she was ready and out her door for the second time that day.

She took her time walking from her apartment to the coffee shop, trying to clear her mind before she met with Katya. She had ambushed Katya on the phone without necessarily meaning to. She didn’t want to do it twice in the span of an hour. Katya had just been offering to help. Trixie was the one who ran with the reading, taking it as personally as she could.

She turned the corner and paused, sitting outside of Temple Coffee was Katya, one hand on the last few bites of a burrito and the other holding her phone. She was mid-bite before she stopped to laugh at her phone. The people at the table next to her jumped at the bark of laughter, turning to stare at her for a second. Katya was oblivious and after settling down, took a bite, her red lipstick leaving a ring on the burrito.

Trixie breathed deeply, centering herself before pushing her cross body purse behind her. She walked towards Katya, holding her hands by her side in tight fists, fighting the urge to pull at the hem of her dress. Katya looked up as Trixie stopped at the table.

“Trixie! Hey!” Katya placed her burrito on the table, careful to keep a scrap of foil as a protective layer against the table. She wiped her hands on a napkin before standing up. Her eyes scanned Trixie’s body, looking for a clue on how to greet her.

Katya held her hands out for a hug and Trixie awkwardly stepped into it, a hand reaching out to pat Katya on the waist. Katya rubbed two quick circles on Trixie’s shoulder and Trixie hoped that it wasn’t a display of pity.

“I’m going to go and get coffee. You want anything?” Trixie asked as Katya pulled out the second chair at the table.

“Sure! Just a small drip coffee. If you promise to come back,” There was a sly wink as Katya sat in her own chair.

Trixie was mortified, cursing at herself for not being able to let any of this go within the past month. She squeaked a ‘ _yeah, I’ll be right back’_ and scurried to the door, pushing slightly instead of pulling and she could only pray that Katya had missed that. Trixie had felt a lot of emotions in the past month, but embarrassment was just now making an appearance.

The line moved too fast for Trixie’s comfort and then she was placing Katya’s coffee in front of her without any plan as to what she was going to say. She sat in the chair Katya had pulled out for her and let out a sigh of relief as Katya broke the silence.

“I’m sorry, I thought my little ‘are you coming back’ joke was funny but I think it might’ve been a little insensitive,” Katya pushed her ball of foil to the side, pulling the coffee towards herself. She glanced up, catching Trixie’s eye and Trixie could’ve sworn her eyes were blue, but today they were gray.

“Honestly, if the cards were reversed, I would’ve made the same joke,” Trixie shrugged, enjoying the sentiment of the apology.

“Oh! So many puns!” And then Katya was laughing a silent laugh that shook her body. She slapped the table once she could breathe and waved her hand at Trixie. “It would take too much to explain it to you.”

Silence settled over them as they both sipped from their coffee. Katya leaned back in her seat, bringing one foot up to the edge of her seat, hugging her bent leg to her chest with one arm. The other balanced the mug on her armrest. She just looked to Trixie and waited. Trixie hummed in appreciation at the calming affect Katya seemed to have on her. Her finger chased a bead of condensation down the side of her iced drink.

“Can you tell me more about tarot?” Trixie licked her lip, her lip gloss bitten off while waiting in line. “Like, basic theory. Why people think that it tells the future? Does it tell the future?” 

“Tarot means different things to different people,” Katya swirled the coffee around in her mug. Her nose scrunched up and Trixie could see the planning that was going into the conversation. “Some people believe that it predicts the future.”

Katya stopped talking, following something across the street with her eyes. That wasn’t enough for Trixie, but before she could demand more, Katya began talking again.

“There’s the idea that when you’re shuffling the deck and thinking about what you’re asking the cards, your thinking influences your hands and how you shuffle. The order of the cards is guided by your emotions and thoughts. You may not be thinking about where you’re cutting the deck, but where you cut it is a conscious decision you made in regards to whatever you were thinking about,” Katya placed her coffee back on the table and flipped open a notebook that Trixie hadn’t noticed. She continued--

“So, when you were shuffling and thinking about your love life, you placed the _Nine of Swords_ where you placed it and the way you shuffled it, kept it upright, which was your heartbreak. Then as you shuffled, your hands put _The Empress_ next and as you were shuffling it, you reversed it so it was upside down. Then the _Ace of Cups_ and that one was upright,” Her fingers traced over paragraphs of notes she had made. “Then when you cut the deck, you cut it so that _Nine of Swords_ was the first card pulled and you get the drift.”

Trixie was silent as Katya’s words sunk in. She understood it, the general concept made sense.

“But does it actually tell the future?” Trixie repeated the one question that hadn’t been answered.

“Uh, some people think it does. Some think it doesn’t. At the end of the day, it all depends on the individual person. You placed that card as your future card. That doesn’t mean it is going to happen. If you don’t believe in it and you reject love in your future then it probably won’t happen. If you’re open to it and looking for love, it’ll probably happen. It’s your card, you can do with it what you want. Interpret it how you want. Believe in it if you want, but only you can decide what happens in your life. Your actions are the only thing that have a real, actual effect on your life.” Katya closed her notebook and picked her coffee back up and Trixie knew she was done.

Trixie brought her straw back to her lips, taking a longer pull from her coffee than was necessary. She stared into the dark liquid, counting the small bubbles that had formed on the top from her incessant stirring. The raging in fire of her had settled down and for the first time in a while, she felt calm. All the anxiety that she couldn’t seem to shake was finally draining from her body. She lost herself in her thoughts, analyzing all the ways in which she felt okay. She only looked up when she felt a nudge on her foot, not realizing Katya was waiting for some sort of affirmation from her.

“Well, all the shit you said was really accurate. And I freaked out and it’s been plaguing me for a month,” Trixie laughed, acknowledging her own foolishness. She shook her head, blinking back the tears that were starting to surface. “God, I feel so stupid. I completely over reacted.”

“Hey, don’t do that,” Katya pulled away the hand that had come up to cover most of Trixie’s face. She squeezed her hand, holding it until Trixie looked up at her. “It’s a really intense thing. Especially if it’s a good reading. Even more so if it’s a heavy reading that brings up such an emotional event. I don’t know your life, I can’t judge you for freaking out. You can cry if you want to, you can be mad at me if you want, that’s fine. I think I resurfaced a lot of feelings and I just want to make sure you’re okay.”

Trixie laughed a garbled chuckle as she blinked some tears out. The people next to them had left at some point in Katya’s monologue and Trixie was thankful.

“Ugh, I will be. As soon as I stop crying. I’m so embarrassed by all of my actions,” Trixie accepted the napkin Katya held out to her, using it to wipe her face.

“Now, will it make it better or worse if I tell you that Jinkx called me and told me about your little outburst at the shop,” Katya laughed at her own comment, then even harder at Trixie’s groan.

* 

The sun was starting to set, ushering in a springtime, evening breeze. Trixie had gotten herself another coffee, this time hot in preparation for the drop in temperature. The dinner rush traffic had come and gone, but they hadn’t moved from their table. Trixie had let all her hair down, using the thick strands as a make-shift blanket over her shoulders. Katya had pulled a cardigan out of her magic purse, offering it to Trixie before putting it on herself after Trixie waved off the gesture with a soft ‘ _thank you, though.’_

Katya had told Trixie about how she opened _Mary’s Menagerie of Oracles_ five years prior, how she could’ve been an Olympian but the torn ACL in her teens had slowed her down and crushed those hopes and dreams. She named off all the family members she had in Boston and how she originally moved to California to go to university. She even told her about when she was 13 and watched _Gone with the Wind_ for the first time with her family and had been caught vigorously rubbing one out that night when her Mom walked into her bedroom without knocking. 

Trixie had thrown in her own stories. Told Katya about her family back in Wisconsin, how the first song she ever wrote was a silly 40 second long homage to Barbie. About how the first time she ever masturbated was as a teenager. It was a weekend when her parents were gone visiting a sick family member a state over. She was in her living room listening to the _Jolene_ vinyl she had found in her grandparents’ house the day prior. Katya had laughed hysterically at that one, stating her lack of surprise.

“A 21st century Dolly flicking the bean to 70’s Dolly!” Katya had exclaimed as she finally caught her breath.

Trixie was red in the face, laughing at Katya’s laugh. The joke wasn’t that funny, but there was something about Katya that made Trixie’s sense of humor a little more silly.

“70’s Dolly was so hot! There’s something about her that will always get my motor running,” Trixie sighed dreamily as she pushed her hair back. The image of a young Dolly Parton strumming at her guitar left Trixie with a dreamy look in her eye. A strong breeze pushed against Trixie from behind, her hair flying forward to halo around her face. Katya smiled softly before lightly taking hold of a chunk of the long strands that had reached halfway across the table.

“I don’t know, I think I like your 21st century rendering more,” Katya smiled a slow smile, showing off those perfect teeth that Trixie was starting to love. Trixie was hypnotized as Katya’s tongue darted out to lick her chapped lips. Her lipstick had completely worn off onto the mug she had been nursing the whole evening.

“That’s reassuring. I’ve been trying to figure out how I wanted to transition this from a budding friendship with a little bit of flirting to me fully and shamelessly flirting with you,” Trixie said as she hooked her foot around one of Katya’s ankles and then they were laughing together. “How about we go on a date?”

“Is this not a date?” Katya was smirking while Trixie blushed.

“I don’t think it counts. Not when it started as me harassing you while I was having a mental breakdown.”

They both sat back in their seats, smiling content little smiles. The silence between them was comfortable as their mugs were collected by a barista who apologized and gave them a 20-minute warning before they had to take the table and chairs inside for the night.

Then Katya gasped as her eyes lit up, growing wide with an idea that already scared Trixie.

“Maybe I’ll be your divine love and we’ll be together forever!” Katya posed with her mouth open and a hand under her chin, a twinkle in her eye as she poked fun at Trixie.

Trixie froze, laughed and then scoffed at Katya.

“You wish!” Trixie screeched out as she stood up, shaking her head. 

Katya laughed as Trixie started walking away, an obvious sway in her hips. She looked back, shooting Katya a wink over her shoulder. Katya bit back a smile at the display, already completely smitten with Trixie. Then Trixie rounded the corner and Katya sighed, pulling out her phone to text her, invite her to breakfast in the morning.

A yell of ‘ _you comin’?!’_ caught Katya’s attention and she looked up. Trixie was peering at her around the corner of the building, a grin on her face lighting up her brown eyes in the dim light. Trixie laughed as Katya scrambled to put all her things back in her purse. She pulled out a few crumpled bills and left them on the table, an apology for the waiters who had to watch them shamelessly flirty for hours.

Then Katya caught up to Trixie and they began their walk, wandering through Midtown. Even if Trixie was unsure of it, Katya could feel the cards deep down in her bones and she hoped to God they were right. Trixie slipped her right hand into Katya’s left and a chill ran down Katya’s spine. Only one thought floated in Katya’s head as they walked.

This all felt simply divine.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I hope you enjoyed this lil story! This is where it ends, with a cheesy happy ending. Let me know if ya guys liked it! There will probably be more Trixya from me (well there for sure will be because I'm already planning it). 
> 
> I'm on tumblr if you want to stop by! Same username. (I promise i'm not a completely shitty person)


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